“I see,” Pearson said. “And in that fifteen minute interval before the defendant returned from lunch-what were you doing then?”
“Talking to Frank.”
“The whole time?”
“Yes. The whole time.”
“Why was that?” Pearson held up his hand. “Let me rephrase that. Without telling us what Mr. Fletcher said, which would be hearsay, can you tell us in general what you were talking about.”
“Of course. About Mr. Macklin and the money and the shortage in the petty cash drawer.”
“I see. So you were with Mr. Fletcher the entire time from when Mr. Macklin left until the defendant returned from lunch?”
“That’s right.”
“During that time, did he have occasion to go near the petty cash drawer?”
“No, he did not.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. We were in his inner office. The cash drawer is in the outer office, in Miss Dearborn’s desk.”
“You were with him in his office when Miss Dearborn returned from lunch?”
“That’s right.”
“And what time did you leave the office that day?”
“Around five o’clock.”
“Was anyone with you when you left?”
“Yes. Mr. Fletcher.”
“The two of you left together?”
“That’s right.”
“Was there anyone in the office when you left?”
“Yes. Miss Dearborn. She closes up at five-thirty.”
Pearson nodded in satisfaction. “And when is the next time you returned to the office?”
“Monday morning.”
“That would be May 3rd?”
“That’s right.”
“What happened then?”
“I met Mr. Fletcher outside the office.”
“What time was that?”
“Approximately eight-thirty.”
“What did you do?”
“We waited for Mr. Macklin. He arrived about five minutes later and the three of us went up and opened the office.”
“What did you do then?”
“Looked in Miss Dearborn’s desk, took out the cash box and inspected the petty cash.”
“Who actually took out the cash box?”
“Frank. Mr. Fletcher.”
“And what did he do then?”
“He counted the money. He told us-”
Pearson held up his hand. “Huh uh, Mr. Lowery. I’m sorry, but you’re not allowed to say what he told you. But after he counted the money, what did you do?”
“I counted the money.”
“You counted it yourself?”
“Yes, I did.”
“What did you discover?”
“There was a hundred dollars missing.”
“A hundred dollars?”
“That’s right.”
“Let me be very clear about this. You determined there was a hundred dollars missing? From you own personal observation? You’re not basing that on something that Mr. Fletcher said?”
“Not at all. I counted it myself.”
“Fine. And after you counted it, what did you do then?”
“Well, I told Mr. Macklin- But I guess I’m not allowed to say that.”
“No, no,” Pearson said. “Whatever you said is fine.”
“I see. Well, I told Mr. Macklin there was a hundred dollars missing.”
“Fine,” Pearson said. “And were you there when the defendant arrived for work that morning?”
“Yes, I was.”
“Without going into any conversations that may have transpired, did there come a time when Mr. Macklin identified himself to the defendant?”
“Yes, there did. He took out and showed her his I.D.”
“And did there come a time when Mr. Macklin inspected the contents of the defendant’s purse?”
“Yes, there did.”
“And what did he find?”
“He found four twenty dollar bills in her wallet.”
“And what, if anything, did he do with those bills?”
“He compared them to the list of serial numbers in his notebook.”
“With what result?”
“Two of the bills from the defendant’s wallet matched the serial numbers on his list.”
“Mr. Lowery, I have cautioned you about hearsay testimony. Do you know that because of something Mr. Macklin told you?”
“No, sir. I know that because after Mr. Macklin pointed it out, I compared the serial numbers myself.”
“You personally compared the serial numbers on those twenty dollar bills to the serial numbers on Mr. Macklin’s list?”
“Yes, I did.”
“And two of the serial numbers matched?”
“That’s correct.”
“Thank you, Mr. Lowery. That’s all.”
7
In the back of the courtroom, Tracy Garvin frowned. Frank Fletcher and Samuel Macklin had been duck soup for Steve Winslow. He had no problem making them look bad.
Marvin Lowery was something else. He had an open, honest quality about him. The jurors liked him. And they weren’t going to like it if Steve tore into him. That sort of strategy simply wasn’t going to fly.
Making him look foolish wouldn’t work either-Steve couldn’t pull an x-ray vision bit like he had with Macklin. Ridiculing Lowery would only alienate the jury.
So what could he do?
Steve Winslow rose slowly, crossed to Marvin Lowery and smiled. “Mr. Lowery, correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe you testified that on the morning of May 3rd you met Mr. Fletcher and Mr. Macklin outside your office building at approximately eight-thirty. Is that correct?”
“Yes, it is.”
“The three of you went up and unlocked the office?”
“That’s right.”
“Who was it who actually unlocked the office at that time?”
“Frank did. Mr. Fletcher.”
“Mr. Fletcher has keys to the office?”
“Yes, of course.”
“As his partner, do you also have keys to the office?”
“Of course I do.”
“And I believe you testified that Miss Dearborn was in the habit of closing up the office at five-thirty. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Then am I to assume she also had keys to the office?”
“Yes, of course.”
“So over the weekend-from Friday, April 30th, till Monday, May 3rd-the defendant was in possession to keys to the office. She could have gone there at any time, unlocked the door and taken money from the petty cash drawer. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“And the same is true of you and Mr. Fletcher?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“You had keys to the office. And Frank Fletcher had keys to the office. Over the weekend, either one of you could have gone to the office and removed money from the petty cash drawer. Is that right?”
A.D.A. Pearson was about to object, when he saw the smile on Marvin Lowery’s face. He shut up. Lowery was a good witness. The jurors liked him. Let him take care of himself.
“Sure,” Lowery said. “Frank could have done that. Or I could have done that. We have the keys to the office, so there was nothing to stop us from going there and taking money from the petty cash drawer.” He chuckled. “The only thing we couldn’t have done would have been put those bills in Miss Dearborn’s wallet. We had the keys to our place, but we didn’t have the keys to hers, you see.”
“I see,” Steve said. He nodded gravely. “That’s a very good point, Mr. Lowery. If you or Mr. Fletcher had taken any money from the petty cash drawer over the weekend, there was no way it could have wound up in Miss Dearborn’s purse. So those twenty dollar bills must have got there some other way. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“We know they got there, because you were present when Mr. Macklin discovered them in Miss Dearborn’s wallet. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“And that was when Miss Dearborn arrived at the office at approximately nine o’clock on the morning of Monday, May 3rd?”